In the first inning of Monday's Rockies-Giants game, Pablo Sandoval crushed a ball against Jhoulys Chacin. That ball left the stadium, scored Melky Cabrera, and gave the Giants a 2-0 lead in Colorado.
As Panda approached plate, he did a series of incredibly intricate motions. This is his home run celebration, and it was captured by Carson Cistulli of FanGraphs in GIF form. It is, like most Giants GIFs, absolutely mesmerizing.
As Cistulli notes, there are four specific acts that Panda performs within the space of about 25 feet. First he crosses himself (Catholic-style). Then he does a hand-clasp ode to heaven. Then he claps once.
Then, after stepping on home plate, he puts on a championship belt. Or, as it's known elsewhere, a "Discount Double Check."
Maybe Panda's simply developed a new celebration for this season to keep his focus. Or maybe Panda's angling for a deal from State Farm.
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Whatever the reason, Giants fans hope they see this 50 times in 2012.
